Archeologists unearth 7th-century temple full of gold, jewels in Greece

Archaeologists have recently unearthed a 2000-year-old temple full of gold and jewels on the Greek island of Evia after another was discovered a few years ago, The Independent reported.

According to a social media post from the Greek Ministry of Culture, the "monumental building in the heart of the sanctuary" was first found in 2017. Around six years later, in 2023, a second temple was discovered.

According to the ministry, "rich relics" and jewels were discovered during the excavation of this second temple.

Other excavations found buildings from the ninth and eighth centuries BC.

Greece’s Ministry of Culture said, "The excavation of the archaic temple brought to light rich offerings: Corinthian alabaster, attic vases, ritual prochos of local production, as well as jewellery made of precious materials like gold, silver, and coral."

Additionally, several structures were discovered inside the 100-foot-long temple, which were likely used as altars by worshippers in the seventh century.

The most unusual design was a horseshoe-shaped altar, with deep layers of ash that revealed a richness of burned bones, indicating consistent use.

"The possibility that some of them predate the temple cannot be ruled out," the ministry added, "The first level of use of the horseshoe altar yielded pottery dating to the end of the 8th century BC."

Below the temple, archaeologists found dry stone walls that belonged to a building built similarly to the temple itself. Here, researchers found bronze figurines from the Geometric period, which ran from 900 to 700 BC, and a clay bullhead from the Mycenaean period, which lasted from 1,750 to 1,050 BC.

The temple was partially destroyed in the sixth century BC, likely by a fire, the ministry said.

Furthermore, earlier this week, Greek archaeologists announced they had uncovered an ancient aqueduct built by a Roman emperor along with more than two dozen silver coins.